Those Who Know Loneliness
by Hakuran23
Summary: Destiny is a never ending river of unpredictability. But what if you made a ripple so big it completely change the course of life that was already preordained right from the beginning? Deidara, Sasori and the whole Akatsuki are about to find out the true definition of anguish through the life of a boy named Naruto Uzumaki. Good Akatsuki with Orochimaru.
1. Chapter 1

**Those Who Know Loneliness **

**Author's Note: Hello guys this is my first story so please be nice! **

**Legend:**

"Dialogue"

_'Thoughts'_

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**Chapter 1: Change**

In the shadows of our mind, Lies are in its midst. Like paper burning to cinders it's left to fly away in the wind, never to be remembered. However, as the paper is incinerated by the flames we can still see the smoke of which the fire caused. Konoha is a village that is known for its utopian-like upbringing. The people there are nice, humble and hospitable. But like all humans, one smile can hide one thousand things-specifically secrets. Because deep down, the people know that one boy can destroy everything not because of his tenant, but because the hatred of a child has the same wrath as the devil's.

The forests in Konoha are so vast that one would think that once you enter, you can never be found ever again. But unfortunately, it wasn't enough to hide a certain jinchuriki. He is currently being chased around by the very villagers that he protects from the demon fox sealed inside of him. They were holding pitchforks and torches as they continued their pursuit to end a life that was barely beginning.

"When are they ever going to go away?" Naruto asked himself as he staggered from one tree to another to escape from them.

"There's the demon brat!"

"Yeah get him!" All around you can see crimson bathe the trees as they slowly fall to the ground. Everything to Naruto was all a blur. One minute he was just making his was home and then the other he found himself here, being hunted down like a wild animal.

Meanwhile...

"Hey Sasori are we there yet?" A blonde haired akatsuki asked the redhead as they slowly headed to Konoha.

"We're in a vast forest Deidara. It'll take us a few more hours to get there." Sasori said as they continued moving forward.

"Ok fine I was just- hey do you see that?" Deidara started looking towards where the burning trees are. They could see a child being chased around by grownups. And yes they did not like this one bit.

"What on earth are they doing? Deidara hurry up we've got to stop this."

"I didn't think you were a sympathetic person Sasori."

"I am if it's children, now let's go!" they hurriedly went to aid the blonde haired boy. They slaughtered those merciless fools and let him cower in awe. He had never seen such carnage in his young life. This was a glimpse of what war was truly like.

Once it was all over they looked at the boy with nothingness in his eyes. It was as if it was a walking dead carcass resurrected to wait for its inevitable death.

_'Those aren't the eyes of a child'_... both of them thought as they stepped towards the boy.

"What's your name?" Deidara asked as he looked at the boy with such regret. To think he was planning to just leave him here. Leave him here to die.

"N-Naruto..." His voice was so cracked. It's as if they weren't used in decades. His clothes were tattered and his hair was covered in blood. His or the villagers they didn't know. But as they looked lower they could see bruises, scars, and wounds littered his frail body.

"Do you want to go with us?" Sasori wanted to look away he really did. He had seen cruelty but not in this level.

"What's in it for me? What's left for me to have?" Naruto looked so broken, so untouhable that a little touch can already break him.

'_It may already have'_ Sasori wished this wasn't true. But seeing this begged to differ.

"What happened here?" They heard a voice in the distance. Both of them knew they could take care of the reinforcements, but seeing little Naruto's injuries needed medical treatment they knew they needed to leave this place.

"Sasori we need to leave now!" Deidara shouted as he started making a clay bird to fly them to the hideout. Sasori attempted to grab Naruto but he kept struggling.

"I don't want to leave! Let me go!" Naruto kept moving and worsening his wounds.

"I guess I have no choice." Sasori knocked him out by piercing a senbon to a section of his neck, knocking him out instantly.

"C'mon let's go!" Deidara slowly flew up as sasori jumped up to ride towards the hideout.

As they escaped, they didn't know how much they had changed destiny and how they had just lengthened their life just by helping a boy. Let it be good or bad we still don't know. It's still anybody's game. But there won't be a winner in a game made by fate.

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**I hope you guys review if you do, the chapter after this will be longer and I'll even update sooner!**

**Bye and have a nice day!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Those Who Know Loneliness **

**Chapter 2**

**Author's note:** Hello guys thanks for the follow and favorites but also make sure to review me so you can give suggestions of recommendations okay?

**legend:**

_'thoughts'_

"dialogue"

* Explanation at the end of the chapter

* * *

**Naruto's POV**

My eyes were heavy but I still opened them anyway. As I look around my surroundings I only see darkness. When I tried to stand up or at least move I find my limbs completely drained of energy and a dull ache from where my previous injuries were supposed to be.

'_Maybe I'm in a cave or something?'_

Suddenly I see a speck of light in the distance as an opening creaks open. Someone must be coming. I pretend to be asleep and start to hear voices from afar.

"...We're not a charity case Deidara, Sasori! This child isn't supposed to be here."

"The villagers in Konoha were trying to kill him Leader-sama! You can't really expect us to leave him me and Sasori have seen orphans treated unfairly but what the kid went through was too much!"

"Look I know that both of you were practically abandoned by your loved ones but we can't really take care of him. It will delay us from making our plans for the future*****."

"Leader-sama, why don't you take a look at him and see why exactly we took him in..." his voice sounded remorseful and sympathetic towards me. After a moment of silence, I heard footsteps coming my way.

'_It must be the leader...'_

Once I saw someone come in from the opening (which was a door) and it was a strange man with orange coloured hair wearing the same outfit as my 2 saviours. He had piercings in his face and his eyes were a very noticeable feature; A light purple with circles inside.

'Tell me boy, what is your name." His voice was filled with authority while his eyes were eerily looking at me for what felt like forever before I could open my mouth.

"Na-Naruto Uzumaki."

**Pain's POV**

Looking at the fragile body of this boy, it angered me to know that his own village damned him into this stature. A frown smeared my face but I try not to make it prominent. I don't want to scare him after all.

"My idiotic subordinates took you in without second thought and we have no choice to keep you here for a bit longer. Those wounds of yours may have been healed, but we can't be too sure about your mental health." It may be out of character to help him, but somehow this boy reminds me so much of me when I was a child.

"It is alright. Though honestly, I heard a snippet of your conversation not too long ago so this was to be expected."

'_Quite a vocabulary for a child who looks like a 6 year old. I might need to investigate this a bit longer.'_

"I will escort you to your temporary room." Once he's all well I'll just erase his memories and send him back.

"Thank you very much." We quietly made our way to one of our vacant rooms. The room he got was a moderate size. It had no windows but it had an inviting bed, blanket and a table with a lamp beside it. There was also a desk and a seat in the opposite side that was completely empty.

'This will do for now...'

"Excuse me sir but you've never introduced yourself." He looked at me with mild interest until I finally said it.

"Oh I'm terribly sorry...my name is Pain."

"Well it's a pleasure to meet you Pain-sama. But can I please ask you a favour? I would like to rest a bit on the bed and once that's over you can continue to interrogate me."

"That will be fine. You can sleep as long as you wish." As he slowly made his way to the bed and started sleeping, I stepped out of the room and locked it. The some of the rooms in the Akatsuki Hideout are locked outside if the subordinates aren't so reliable or trustworthy. I walked towards the meeting room to give the latest update to the rest of the Akatsuki. It wasn't in a holographic message; all of them were there in the conference table seated in seats they were assigned in.

"What is this I've been hearing about leader-sama? Taking in a worthless child for the sake of pity? That is so unbecoming of you." Orochimaru, One of the renowned Sannin's serpentine voice was heard and his listeners grudgingly agreed no matter how much they hated the man.

"That kid would have made such a great sacrifice leader-sama. If you're tired of him already make sure to give him to me." Hidan was a man with white hair and purple eyes. He was known for his immortality and his manner of killing his victims.

"Who knows how much money this would cost us. Are you sure we can afford this?" Kakuzu was the cheapest person in the Akatsuki. He takes care of the economic ordeals in the Akatsuki. Known for his battle prowess by being able to use the 5 elements and to have fought with the First Hokage*****.

"I think this was a good idea leader-sama. Tobi thinks leader is a good boy." Tobi was as weird as they come. Repeatedly saying about how good he is was really peculiar for an S-class criminal organization. Well at least he lightens up the mood.

'_Why is he here again?'_

"Hey we call dibs on eating him." Zetsu was a cannibal. Specializing in espionage, he can surpass the 4th Hokage in stealth. Without him, we can't keep up updates in the different villages.

"Whatever your decision is leader-sama, i fully support it." Konana was one of my most loyal subordinates. She has the power to manipulate paper in such a way that it acts as her weapons.

"I've heard that Sasori and Deidara brought him here. Is that true leader-sama?" Kisami Hoshigaki was formerly in the Seven Swordsman of the Mist. Looking like a shark really intimidates his opponents and by no means is he a pushover. I

"Yes those accusations are true. That is why I have called you here to report to you of my plans. Until the boy heals, we're going to send him back to Konoha. We're going to postpone our plans about hunting Konoha Ninjas to make a profit*."

As the meeting continued about future plans, Sasori and Deidara were really quiet. I started thinking about why they brought Naruto here in the first place. I've seen other orphans even worse than them. So why is he any different?

**2 hours later**

I made my way to Naruto's room and made a gentle knock on the door to inform him of my presence. Once I heard his chakra spike up I unlocked the door and went in.

"How was your nap?"He looked at me with such wonder. As if this was the first act of hospitality he's received in his young life.

"It was fine thank you." I seated next to him in the bed and helped him sit down with me. We were both quiet after that. It was really weird talking to a boy as young as him. But I kept analyzing his stature a bit further. He was pretty small, a bit on the malnourished side when it comes to weight and he had whisker marks. I didn't know if it was a birthmark or not but I hope it was the former.

"You shouldn't have helped me you know... It won't benefit you in any manner." Right now he looks so tired; waiting for death to slowly take him in a cold embrace to never feel pain ever again.

"I didn't really help you. It was Sasori and Deidara's decision to take you in."

"They should have thought more about their decision before they made it."

"Why are you so insistent on facing death in such an early age?"

"Well why should I tell my life story to a stranger?" He had a good point there. I wasn't normally like this. But this boy, this agonizing and pitiful boy was a sight anyone would want to help in any problem he was facing. And seeing this small, injured carcass trying to find death in a world full of life was so forlorn.

"Because you need to trust me so I can help you."

"...Fine you have my trust for now. it's not like I have a choice anyway..."

There was again a moment of silence. I guess I'm not the only one who's not much of a talking person.

"You have such sad eyes." Those words haunted me. For a man who went through war to look at a child and see such an exact reflection of his darkness in someone so young. I looked at him again and saw it; the pain, the sadness and the sorrow. Then it dawned to me. That I died everyday for the people I have killed for peace. But this child died everyday for the life he was living because of his existence.

"...But do you know what's sadder? That your eyes look so much like mine." I completed his sentence like a puzzle that was meant to be completed.

"So tell me the reason for your sadness leader-sama. For the only ones who understand your words are people as broken as you. I may be a child but my pain is so much more to comprehend."

"How is yours greater? I went through war! I lost my friends and I have no home." He looks at me again but this time not out of sadness, but of oppressed anger and envy.

'Envy?'

"But at some point of your life you were still happy. You had memories of your friends, your family and your home. And when you look at me what do you see? And orphan who seeks refuge in a place he was forced to call home, an orphan who lived in solitude for the rest of his 6 years of life and an orphan who receives scars, bruises and wounds instead of hugs and kisses from a family..." I realized that his words were so true. That all this time I was so lucky to have those memories in my heart. I've never felt so happy and sad at the same time with this realization. I was Happy because of my blessings, but sad because this boy has nothing to lose.

"So tell me..." He looked at me with his broken gaze. The eyes of a person who had nothing to begin with.  
"Is my pain greater than yours?" After that there was silence once again. But this time it bothered me more than him. The question he asked me need not to be answered. Because we both know what it will be.

'_Yes'_

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**Explanations:**

*** In this fic they didn't start hunting junchuriki's yet**

***Kakuzu was sent on a mission to assasinate the 1st Hokage so they fought and of course he lost**

***This was their plan for now. Hunting ninjas and collecting their bounty instead of jinchuriki hunting**

**-Itachi isn't in the fic yet I'm so sorry**

**PLEASE REVIEW! THANK YOU **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I only own the plot**


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